Collapsible golf shaft



1 5 PgINVENTUR.

[( yle P Edwards M/ (WM ATTORNEY.

K. P. EDWARDS COLLAPSIBLE GOLF 'SHAFT Filed. April 8., 1951 July 24, 1934.

Patented July 24, 1934 UNITED jsr'lsfsiL v n j 1,967,355

QPjTEN-.TOFFICE i This invention relatesto` golf club shafts-andparticularly to longitudinally' collapsible shafts.'

. It is one of the objects of my invention toiprovidea golf :shaft construction wherebyfa golf 5, club may be .longitudinally .collapsed `or shortened for transportation. purposes. Another object `of myinvention is so provide a longitudinally collapsible golf shaftjwhich willl be cheap to construct and eicient and durable in .10` operation. l

Another object is to. provide a longitudinally.

collapsible golf shaft comprising a plurality of relatively movablepartswhich are constructed in a manner to prevent their beingy separated purposeaand thetwo portions being adapted to 7Q y .15;from each other, Y, l

Another object is to provide agolf club comprising a shaft composedof a plurality of. longitudinallyf collapsible portions adapted vto `be joinedwor assembled together for uselandpro--v` vided with al joint .construction for joined por tions thereof which willrbe free -from looseness orany liabilityto loosenes's. y f

Another object is to provide a golf-club com-A prising a plurality. of; longitudinally :collapsible ;portions adaptedto be joined or assembled to gether foruse withoutvariation vfrom apre-.- determined longitudinal alignment relationship ofthe portions." 1

gether for use without variation in the relative rotational Yrelationship of. the .parts around thev a joint construction which I may employwith longitudinal axis.

`` -Another object istoprovide-a, golf cluboomprising'a plurality of longitudinally .collapsible portions `adapted to be `joined or assembled toor assembled together -foruse in a mannerfto prevent rotatableshiftingiofrthe head endfof` `the club relativeto the handle vor grip end when under the action `:of torque-producing impact onthehead.-

Another Objectis' to provide agolf `club comprising a plurality of `longitudinally Vcollapsible i portions adapted to be joined or `assembled 130.-.

gether for use and constructed'to Arequire the minimum of "added weight in the-joint: portions.

-Another 'objectis '.to provide 5.a 'longitudinallyy collapsible golf club comprising a plurality-.ofi -portions`, vonevof which isadapted to-be telek scoped longitudinally within the other in an improved manner. j' Another object, is to provide -a longitudinally collapsible golf club comprising-two portions, a hollow handle portion and a head-carrying shaft 60.i; portion, the `shaft portion being `adapted to .be longitudinally telescoped within the handle portion; i Y

Another object is tojprovide a longitudinally collapsible fgolf club comprising a hollow handle portion` and a head-carrying shaft portion, the. shaft. portion -being l adapted to vloe telescopedlongitudinally within. the. handle portion to shorten the length of the ,club for `transportation be','untelescoped.:` to a. predetermined degree of overlap andrigidly secured together at the overlapped ,portions to form a full length club for use.

other objects will .be apparent te these skilled in the art to which my invention appertains.

My invention is fully disclosed in the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which: y

Fig v1 isa side elevationalV view of a complete 80 .l golf` club embodying my invention, and withY the partsin position lfor use; Y j v Y 1 Fig2A is .aviewyslmilar to Fig. l-of the club .of that ligure in longitudinally collapsed condition for; transportation purposes; Y, 1 i

Fign` is ya longitudinal cross sectional view of` the club Vof Figs. 1 `and. 2with parts `broken. away and drawntoa larger Ascale and illustrating the parts Ithereof-.in the ,assembled or uncol- 90.. lapsed condition of Fig. 1; Y

Fig. .4 is a fragmentary cross sectional vieV of somefof ythe parts-of Fig. 3*;

Fig. 5 is, an elevational view of the upper end of a club .shaft Vportion which I mayemploy, .and 95e'. shown also in Fig. 3; a

Referring tov the'dr'awing, I have showngener` allyat .1 a'handle or gripr portion of agolf club, and'generallyat 2 a "shaft portion (on the lower endof which is a club head 3. The head `3 may..10.0 besef/the. usual construction andmay be of j any of the forms knownin the art and may lbe attached lto-the lower endofthe shaftiZ in any preferred manner, these features constitutingno essential par-t of `myinvention; and inthis con- 105.`

of wood and metal. i Y

In the practice of my invention, the shaft portion 2 is adapted to be telescoped within the handle portion 1 to dispose the parts as illustrated in Fig. 2 wherein it will be seen that the total length of the golf club is approximately only one-half of that of the full length club of Fig. 1; and similarly the parts as illustrated in Fig. 2 may be untelescoped to dispose them in the condition of Fig. 1 for use as a club. The construction of the two parts of the club and the means to secure them together and the mode of operation thereof for the purposes just mentioned will now be described in connection with Figs. 3, 4 and 5.

The upper end of the shaft portion 2, which in the embodiment illustrated is' of tubular 4construction, is provided with. a shank vportion 4 of slightly enlarged diameter which, at its Vlower portion, is provided with external screw `:threads 5 and at its upper portion with a head 6.

The construction thus described may "be `provided by telescoping a shank 4 of tubular material such as metal over the shaft portion 2 and telescoping a tubular head 6 over the .shank .portion 4, and by means of welding, brazing, pressforce fitting, shrinking or like processes, the parts may all be rigidly secured together; or if preferred, they may be formed integrally out -of a single piece of material.

In the embodiment illustrated, the shank portion 4 is slightly tapering, the surface thereof converging downwardly. The head 6 at its upper termi-nation 7 may be disposed in a transverse plane but at its lower end the -head -6 -is provided with a plurality such as four cusps 8-8. The cusps may be of various suitable shapes but I prefer to give them the shape -of equilateral triangles, that is vtosay, to form them to embrace an angle of 60. Preferably also the cusps are disposed symmetrically around the axis of theshaft. Y

The handle portion 1 fof the club comprises an inner tubular handle Vportion 9 in ythe lower end of which is an internal -head 10 preferably 'provided `by securing `in the -tu'bular handle .9 -a

'101is disposed a ferrule 12, the outer surface :of

which is conical, tapering downwardly'. The ferrule-isprovided with an aperture 13 substantially the same size as the inside diameter .of the 4i-nternal head v10.` The .outer surface of the tubular-handle 9" is preferably covered lwith a grip surface of leather, or like suitable material, 14, which may be wrapped spirally thereupon from end 'to end ofthe tubular 4handle 9. The

lower end of the winding 14 may be secured .inv place by an upwardly extending tubular 'extension of the ferrule 12 shown at 15, telescoped outwardly. upon the winding 14. f

'The upper end of the tubular handle v9 may be externally threadedv as at 16 yand :upon the threads' may'. be screwed a Icover 'or cap 17'., and

the :cap may have .a' downwardly extending tubular .portion 18 ad-apted'to telescope-outwardlyiover the upper .endfof the winding 14;

.In assembling the 'handle portion l and shaft portion 2 above described, the :shaft :portion 2,

before the head 3 is secured thereto, is telescoped from above downwardly through the handle portion 1 before the cap 17 is put on the handle. Then the cap 17 is screwed into place and thereafter the shaft and handle portions are, in the practice of my invention, never separable.

The head 6 substantially ts the inside wall of the tubular handle 9 as at 19. Also the shank portion 4 substantially ts the inner wall of the inter-nal head 10 as at 20, and to this end, the internal wall 21 of the said internal head may be slightly conical, and downwardly tapering.

"When the shaft portion and handle portion are untelescoped as far as they may go, the tongues 11-11 of the handle portion will mesh with the cusps `8--8 .of the' shaft portion and the parts will then be in the position illustrated in Fig. 3.

At this time, a nut 22 freely encircling the shaft portion 2, is moved upwardly axially along the shaft portion until its threads may be screwedon the thread y5. The-nut 22 in its upper .portion has a `downwardly tapering internal corneal wall of approximately the .same angle as the conical ferrule 12. When the nut 22 is screwed tightly on the thread 5, its conical wall 23 engages the ferrule l2 and both centers the shaft 2 with respect toy the handle portion 1 anddraws the two portions in the untelescoping.

direction to draw :the tongues 11 into the cusps 8 and rigidly seat the same together. This dis poses the parts in Ycondition for use as a club.

It will .be observed that the two portions 1 and 2 vof the club overlap each other at the joint construction indicated generally :at 24'; that the joint is perfectly rigid, particularly in the preferred form of construction in which the head 6 and .shank 4 ft respectively the tubular handle 9 and the internal head 10. The overall length of the shaft is invariable and the `shaft portion 2 when Aa blow Ais struck .on the head 3 cannot twist outof Vposition with respect to the handle portion 1 because of .the engagement of the tongues 11 and cusps 8.

When the minimum of cost is an essential consideration, the close t between the shank portion 4 andthe internal head l0 and particularly the tapering fit thereof :may be omitted, and the tight engagement of the tongues 11l :and the cusps 8 and a reasonably accurate fltjbetween the head 6 .andthe tubular handle 9, taken in conjunction with the .centering eifect and rigid 'interlocking action of the .nut 22 on the conical ferrule l2 may be relied upon to effect a joint -of suflicient rigidity.

Aller 25 of light-weightmetal such as aluminum, maybe disposed rwithin the shaft portion and extend over a .portion of the overlapping joint construction to .facilitate the use ofthin walled parts and to supplement their rigidity if desired.

To collapse the :club shaft of myinvention, it is only necessary to unscrewthe nut '22 and permit it to slide down on the. shaft portion 2 to such position as thatv illustrated in Fig. 2 whereupon, the two parts of the shaft. may be telescoped together, the head 6 vsliding upwardly into the tubular handle 9 until it takes up the position indicated indotted lines in Fig.l 3,' its extreme upper position :being stopped upon the inner. internal end wall of the .cap 17.

In untelescoping .the handle and lshaft portions .preparatory to locking them .together for use,fit.is highly desirable that the shaft portion 2 and .handle portion 1 shall' in every instance take `up exactly theysamerelatively rotational are in the collapsed position, for the shaft tov rotate.' aroundfwithin thel 4 handleV portion. In order thenthat the desired :predetermined rotational relative position maybe attained when the parts are assembled for use, I prefer to` mark the lower endof thehandle portion'l as at 26 and the upper end ofthe shaftpo'rtion v2 as at-27 withrindiciasuch as arrows or Vstars to indicate generally the` correct relative positions of the handle and shaft, andfwhen theyfare placedgenerally relatively in these positions, the nut 22, upon being drawn up tight, will cause the interaction of the tongues 11 and cuspsV 8 to exactly position the handle and shaft portions as willV be understood.

It is, furthermore, within the scope of my invention to so form the tongues l1 and cusps 8 and to so space the same relatively that they cannot be interineshed except in one predeter- ,vnnned relative rotational position of the shaft 1 and handle 2, in which case the indicia 26 and 2'? would not be needed, butthe preferred form comprehends the use of the indicia with tongues 11 and cusps 8 of any suitable shape and disposition.

By means of the foregoing construction and mode of operation it will be apparent that the following advantages result.

The parts of the club including the handle portion, shaft portion and the nut 22 are not separable and cannot become lost nor interchanged accidentally with corresponding parts of other shafts. The joint between the parts is rigid and there is no looseness in it nor liability of looseness in use; 'I'he club will have the same feel every time it is set up for use because of the predetermined alignment relation of the parts. When it is desired to repair the shaft portion 2, it may be taken out of the club separately, by first removing the head 3, and

-repairs independently of the handle portion 1 whereby repairs are rendered relatively cheap. In case of accident, a new shaft portion may be supplied without the necessity of greater cost of both shaft and handle ashas heretofore been necessary. The joint construction prevents accidental shifting of the head 3 rotationally when a blow is struck on a golf ball. The joint construction and mode of operation are equally applicable to wood or metal shaft portions. The

Vjoint construction provides a suitable amount of of my invention. Y

Preferably in practice, theA nut 22 isprovided with threads of small helical angle and the outer periphery of the nut is relatively large, whereby it may be easily screwed up with gsufcient `tightness by the unaided thumb and finger, but

if preferred, wrench surfaces may be provided on the nut for cooperation with a suitable wrench.

I claim:

1. In a collapsible golf shaft, a tubular handle, `a 'shaft telescopically longitudinally movable therein, stop portions on the handle and shaft respectively engageable upon telescopioally extending the handle and shaft, and means for telescopically extending' the handle and shaft and forceably engaging 4the stop portions, the` stop vportions being provided with interlocking surfaces to predeterminea relative rotational position of the handle :and shaft.

2. In a collapsible'golf club, a tubular handle, a` shaft telescopically longitudinally movable therein, stop portionson the handle and shaft respectively engageable upon telescopically eX- tending the handle and shaft, a screw-threaded nut on the shaft engageable with a portion of the handle to telescopically extend the handle and shaft and forceably engage the stop portions.

3. In a collapsible golf club, a tubular handle, a shaft telscopically longitudinally movable therein, stop portions on the handle and shaft respectively engageable upon telescopioally extending the handle and shaft, a screw-threaded nut on the shaft engageable with a portion of the handle to telesccpically extend the handle and shaft and forceably engage the stop portions, the nut and the corresponding engageable portion of the handle having conical mutually engageable surfaces to axially align the shaft relative to the handle.

4. In a collapsible golf club, a tubular handle, a shaft telescopically longitudinally movable in the handle, the shaft having an enlarged portion substantially fitting the handle interiorly thereof, the handle being provided on its lower end with a conical surface, a nut screw-threaded on the shaft having a conical surface engageable with that on the handle, the handle and shaft, having mutually interlockable portions adapted to be interlocled by a longitudinal extension movement, said interlocking portions when moved longitudinally into interlocked relation being adapted to stop further Vlongitudinal movement of f the handle and shaft and being adapted to establish a predetermined relative rotational position of the handle and shaft, the interlockable portions being adapted to be drawn into interlocked relation by the nut when turned.

5. In a collapsible golfV club, a tubular handle, a shaft telescopically longitudinally movable in the handle, the shaft having an enlarged portion substantially tting the handle interiorly thereof, the handley being provided on its lower end with a conical surface, a nut screw-threaded on the shaft having a conical surface engageable with that on the handle, the handle and shaft, having mutually interlockabla portions adapted to be interlocked by a longitudinal extension movement, said interlocking portions when moved longitudinally into interlocked relation being adapted to stop further longitudinal movement of the handle and shaft and being adapted to establish a predetermined relative rotational position of the handle and shaft, the interlockable portions being adapted to be drawn into interloclred relation by the nut when turned, and the engageable conical portions of the nut and handle being adapted to axially align the shaft with the handle.

6. In a collapsible golf club, a tubular handle, a shaft telescopically longitudinally movable in the handle, the shaft having an enlarged portion substantially fitting the handle interiorly thereof, the handle being provided on its lower end with a conical surface, a nut screw-threaded KA:so i

on the shaft having a conical surface engageable with that on the handle, the handle and shaft, having mutually interlockable portions adapted to be interlocked by a longitudinal extension movement, said interlocking portions when moved longitudinally into interlocked relation being adapted to stop further longitudinal movement of the handle and shaft and being adapted to establish a predetermined relative rotational position of the handle and shaft, the interlockable portions being adapted to be drawn into interlocked relation by the nut when turned, and means on the handle and shaft to approximately determine said predetermined rotational relative position. 

